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The alarming epidemic of HIV in Southern Indiana tied to intravenous drug abuse underscores the wisdom of Kentucky lawmakers who included an option for sterile needle exchanges in the comprehensive heroin bill they passed this session.

In Indiana, the surge of HIV cases among 80 people linked to tiny Scott County — population 24,000 — has attracted national headlines and caused Gov. Mike Pence, who has opposed needle exchanges, to reverse course.

Kentucky’s heroin bill was signed into law Wednesday by Gov. Steve Beshear and could result in many saved lives if communities take advantage of the option to offer needle exchanges through local health departments.

The alarming epidemic of HIV in Southern Indiana tied to intravenous
drug abuse underscores the wisdom of Kentucky lawmakers who included an
option for sterile needle exchanges in the comprehensive heroin bill
they passed this session.

In Indiana, the surge of HIV
cases among 80 people linked to tiny Scott County — population 24,000 —
has attracted national headlines and caused Gov. Mike Pence, who has
opposed needle exchanges, to reverse course.

Kentucky’s
heroin bill was signed into law Wednesday by Gov. Steve Beshear and
could result in many saved lives if communities take advantage of the
option to offer needle exchanges through local health departments.

Newswise — More than 180 million people in the world have hepatitis C, compared with the 34 million with HIV/AIDS and the roughly 30,000 who have had Ebola. Yet very little is heard about the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the way of awareness campaigns, research funding or celebrity fundraisers.

One of the global regions highly affected by hepatitis C is West Africa. In developed countries, hepatitis C, a blood-borne disease, is transmitted through intravenous (IV) drug use. “In West Africa, we believe that there are many transmission modes and they are not through IV drug use, but through cultural and every day practices,” says Jennifer Layden, MD, PhD principal investigator on a study recently published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. “In this study, tribal scarring, home birthing and traditional as opposed to hospital-based circumcision procedures, were associated with hepatitis C infection in Ghana.”

The study was conducted by HepNet, an international multidisciplinary group of physicians and scientists. “The other important finding was that a high percentage of individuals who tested positive for HCV had evidence of active infection,” says Layden. “This illustrates the need for treatment.”

Newswise — More than 180 million people in the world have hepatitis
C, compared with the 34 million with HIV/AIDS and the roughly 30,000 who
have had Ebola. Yet very little is heard about the hepatitis C virus
(HCV) in the way of awareness campaigns, research funding or celebrity
fundraisers.

One of the global regions highly affected by
hepatitis C is West Africa. In developed countries, hepatitis C, a
blood-borne disease, is transmitted through intravenous (IV) drug use.
“In West Africa, we believe that there are many transmission modes and
they are not through IV drug use, but through cultural and every day
practices,” says Jennifer Layden, MD, PhD principal investigator on a
study recently published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.
“In this study, tribal scarring, home birthing and traditional as
opposed to hospital-based circumcision procedures, were associated with
hepatitis C infection in Ghana.”

The study was conducted by HepNet, an international multidisciplinary
group of physicians and scientists. “The other important finding was
that a high percentage of individuals who tested positive for HCV had
evidence of active infection,” says Layden. “This illustrates the need
for treatment.”

Hepatitis
A cases have fallen by almost 90 percent over the past 20 years marking
this increased decline as another major step forward in the fight
against the potentially deadly liver disease. Vaccines like Twinrix,
which protect against both Hepatitis A and B, can make a big difference.

“Hepatitis A vaccination is very important for everyone,
especially travelers to high risk countries,” said Melanie Kohr,
Vice-President of Clinic Operations for Passport Health. “Travel trends
are on the rise, and if more people are vaccinated against this
potentially deadly disease, then the likelihood of spreading it when a
traveler returns greatly declines. This can play a critical role in
national health in the long term and for the health of close family
members no matter the situation.”

In a group of young users of injection drugs, recent maintenance
opioid agonist therapy with methadone or buprenorphine for opioid use
disorders, such as heroin addiction, was associated with a lower
incidence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and may be an effective
strategy to reduce injection-drug use and the resulting spread of HCV,
according to a study published online by JAMA Internal Medicine.

The use of injection drugs is a main route of
transmission for HCV infection. Younger drug users are an important
group to target because they are at the core of HCV infections.
Interventions that can prevent HCV infections are vital. Previous
studies have suggested that opioid agonist therapy may reduce the
incidence of HCV infection but little was known about the effect of this
therapy in young drug users.

Our results suggest that treatment for opioid use disorders with maintenance opioid agonist therapy can reduce transmission of HCV in young adult injection drug users and should be offered as an important component of comprehensive strategies for prevention of primary HCV infection,” the authors conclude.

Randy Gutzke, a longtime IV drug user who says he struggles daily to
stay sober, recently was offered a quick-results test for hepatitis C at
a West Side community health center.

More than 1,500 people have
been screened for hepatitis C since February 2013 at public health
“field stations” run through the University of Illinois at Chicago’s
Community Outreach Intervention Projects, thanks to a $150,000 grant
funded through the Affordable Care Act. While the sweeping federal law
is best known for expanding insurance coverage, its authors also hoped
to improve health and cut costs by investing upfront in prevention,
wellness and public health initiatives.

At the COIP centers, that means giving away a $20 test in hopes of
detecting infections that can lead to liver failure and expensive organ
transplants if not treated. More than a third of the people tested have
come up positive, according to Basmattee Boodram, a research assistant
professor in epidemiology at UIC. The money also funds counseling
services and assistance with signing up for health insurance.

“The
goal is to really shift from treating sick people to keeping our
population healthy,” said Rachel Abramson, executive director of
HealthConnect One, which has used ACA money to promote breast-feeding
and evaluate community-based doula programs.

Hepatitis C is a hidden epidemic affecting 170 million people worldwide. Hepatitis C kills nearly 700 Australians every year, mostly from chronic liver failure and liver cancer, and costs over $78.9 million in diagnosis and treatment.

Around 230,000 Australians have chronic hepatitis C infection and 6,600 to 13,200 new infections occur every year.

In Australia the two main hepatitis C genotypes are genotype 1 and 3, occurring
in about 55% and 35%-40% of people of people infected with hepatitis C
respectively. However genotype is not known to significantly impact on
the severity of illness.

The study is aimed at assessing the safety and immunogenicity of HCV prime-boost vaccinations ChAd3-hliNSmut and MVA-hliNSmut, administered intramuscularly in healthy volunteers and DAA treated patients. To read the entire study, click here Share This PageFollow Us … Continue reading → The post The study is aimed at assessing the safety and immunogenicity of HCV […]

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of DAA-based regimens in the clinical practice in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients. Hypothesis: The efficacy and tolerability of all DAA-based regimens in the clinical practice is different to what is … Continue reading → The post Real-life Security and Efficacy of DAA-based Therapy in 1,000 […]